


The Prince and His Hero

by AnonymouslyDead



Category: Batman (Comics), Batman (Movies - Nolan), Batman - All Media Types, Batman: Arkham (Video Games)
Genre: College AU, M/M, art student Joker, joker likes drawing comics, joker's weird imagination
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-16
Updated: 2018-01-16
Packaged: 2019-03-05 14:58:00
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 959
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13390278
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AnonymouslyDead/pseuds/AnonymouslyDead
Summary: The more Jack sees Bruce, the more bruce seems to pop into his drawings.





	The Prince and His Hero

The first time Jack saw the Bruce Wayne walking onto campus, he saw the billionaire pretty boy everyone labeled him as. He strided down the worn cobblestones of the university's quad in his fancy, rich boy clothes, looking more like he was prepared to buy the university instead of attending it.

As a result, Jack turned back to the sketchpad in his lap, deciding he wasn't worth his time. He had a much more important project to work on. He began sketching out framework for a city of depravity with streets drowning in its own sin-

And a prince to rule this wasteland. 

***************************************************************

The next time Jack sees Bruce, Jack sees an absolute nusiance. 

All Harley and Jack had been doing was trying to make the sullen students of Gotham University smile. Sure, the statue of the university's long dead founder was an "important part of campus history", but really, where was the problem in dressing up the dead man as a clown if it made the place a little less miserable?

Bruce Wayne sure seemed to think there was a problem. The killjoy went out of his way to help clean up the mess while also ratting Jack out to the campus police. 

As he sat and waited for the university to give him his slap on the wrist, he quickly sketched out angry lines across his work. Using his anger for inspiration, his prince took form. He was but a simple jokester, galivating through the streets to raise hell with the rest of the city's filth. 

But in his anger, a dark, brooding figure calling himself a hero entered his anarchic hellscape. His intent was bringing law and order in the chaos that the prince delighted in. And, the prince couldn't have that, now could he?

*****************************************************

So, Jack raised more and more hell, trying to push at Bruce's buttons. And each time, it was like Bruce dived in head first. Whether it be a simple scheme of making Bruce late to class or planning something more complex- like breaking into Bruce's dorm to move his shit around, Bruce seemed hellbound to push back equally as hard. There wasn't a day that went by that Jack wasn't holed up with with the campus police because of him, ignoring the empty threats they posed at him with ease. 

But, jack couldn't really complain. He'd be lying if he said he didn't enjoy bugging Bruce.

Plus, his world grew with each confrontation. The hero grew stricter and unrelenting in his quest to kill the prince's fun while the prince just grew more and more out of control. 

Their fights also started to have a meaning. The hero and prince fought for their beliefs. Each connecting hit or particularly painful punch was pull in the aggressor's favor- a deciding factor in whether order or chaos would rule the graphite city. 

**********************************************************

The next time Jack saw Bruce, it wasn't on purpose. Jack had been on his way to his life drawing class when he took a shortcut between two of the campus buildings. He hadn't expected to be cornered on his way to draw nudes. 

Of course being the jokester he was, he was bound to piss off quite a few people in his games. This guy- Tommy, he think is his name- is certainly one of those people. Jack could still remember the look on the guy's face when he walked out of Biology covered in feathers. 

It's only when Tommy poses to actually hit him does the situation hit him, specifically how wrong it was. He was supposed to be dancing across sketchy rooftops to meet the hero's fist. What right did this fool have to punch the prince? 

Thankfully, the hit never came. Tommy turned, surprised to find Bruce grabbing his fist. Then, he adjusted his grip and twisted Tommy's arm painfully behind his back with practiced ease. Bruce stops when Tommy is begging for mercy and makes him leave. All the while, Jack stared at the hero in front of him. 

Later that night, the prince and hero's fight screeches to a halt. The lines are drawn with extensive care as the mask the hero always wore cracks midstrife. A piece falls away, revealing a chunk of the hero's true identity. The prince stared in bewilderment, wondering what exactly he had been fighting against. 

**************************************************************

The next times Jack sees Bruce, he pays more attention. He takes every chance he can to get to see his hero. 

It turns out that Bruce is on the debate team, so Jack started sneaking into the auditorium on the days they practice. 

It also turns out that Bruce is a business student, so Jack spend longer times in the business building. 

It also turns out that they happen to have some of the same friend, so Jack started bugging everyone from Selina to Edward for details on his hero.

And with this research, his hero is fully understood and can finally blooms on paper to match his real life one. His hero is dark and mysterious, a menacing figure to be sure. Yet, there's a bit of something in him, some kind of wildcard that keeps the prince from tiring of his hero. Maybe, it's his foolish optimism or his never ceasing determination-

Jack soon notices that the prince and his hero have ceased fighting altogether. The two creep closer and closer across the paper until the two are flush together. Their punches and kicks were forgone in favor of the loverlike embrace they shared. The two looked each other, finally eye to eye, and closed the remaining distance between them. 

Jack put down his pencil, staring at the paper below him. Finally, the implications hit him like a ton of bricks. 


End file.
